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Commonwealth urges Govt.-LTTE to resume talks
Tuesday, 12 September 2006 - 4:30 AM SL Time
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Commonwealth Secretary General Donald C. McKinnon yesterday called upon the Government and the LTTE to work towards a political resolution to bring an end to Sri Lanka`s longstanding ethnic conflict.
Mr. McKinnon who is now in the island to participate in the Commonwealth Finance Ministers Meeting which kicks off today, asserted that military success cannot deliver peace and that the conflict could only be brought to an end through negotiations. ?Ultimately, the task of resolving the country`s conflict can only be achieved at the negotiating table,? he said.
In an interview with the Daily Mirror at the tightly guarded Cinnamon Grand Hotel, the Secretary-General pointed out that the civil war has been a heavy burden on the country`s economy owing to the additional spending on Defence purposes.
?You must remind yourself of the huge number of deaths that have taken place as a result of this war as well as the extra cost of maintaining the military. Both the Government and the LTTE should seriously work towards achieving sustainable peace,? he stressed, adding that the Commonwealth would be willing to help in whatever way they can.
Mr. McKinnon had his first meeting with President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday evening, prior to the President`s meeting with Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe. The discussion with the President had centered around the challenges facing Finance Ministers of the Commonwealth, in which McKinnon had emphasised on the need to produce benefits in the form of economic opportunities for ordinary people.
The President, in turn, brief ed Mr. McKinnon on the security situation of the country. Prospects for post-tsunami assistance too had been discussed. ?Sri Lanka should make full use of its membership in international organisations and ensure that they receive the best in return,? he stated.
?We are keen to see ideas being exchanged through which new ways of promoting economic growth can be explored and fresh approaches worked out.
So we will ask ourselves what the secrets of economic growth are; in particular, what forms of economic growth can best create facilitate livelihoods,? he said. This topic will be discussed under the theme, ?An Agenda for Growth and Livelihoods? and takes places just ahead of the annual meetings of the IMF and World Bank.
Asked to comment on the perception that the Commonwealth was inert as an institution, McKinnon said that this was far from the case. He explained that the Commonwealth has been actively encouraging governments to embrace democracy, while equipping countries with technical assistance based on their needs via the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Cooperation.
He further pointed out that over the past five years Sri Lanka has received £1.15 million in terms of direct technical assistance and that Sri Lanka gets eight dollars for every one dollar that is paid to the Commonwealth annually.
Coincidentally, Mr. McKinnon`s first visit to Sri Lanka was on September 11, 2001, the day of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in the US, this being his fifth visit to the country. Mr. Mackinnon also held meetings with Mr. Wickremesinghe and Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremenayake yesterday.
The Commonwealth Finance Ministers meeting will bring together ministers and delegates from 53 member states. Participants are expected to discuss trends in the world economy including high oil prices and how they affect member nations.
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Nayaa
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 121
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12 Sep 2006 06:20:54 GMT Report for Abuse
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Who in the world talk with terrorists? What did USA to terrorists after 11th Sept? Just collect them and send them to Guantamo base in Cuba. Why should we keep on talking to terrorists?
The only way is to defeat them by their own methods using weapon. The whole world knows LTTE leader Prabhakaran is a terrorist who did lot of murders including Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Ghandi.
Why should we talk with such a terrorist then bringing him to justice? |
samanj
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 1556
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12 Sep 2006 12:32:01 GMT Report for Abuse
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Is the commonwealth encouraging the ltte to re group by pushing the gosl for talks.
talks can begin and let the war go on untill there is sense dawn in that ltte must realise that there is no place for an arm struggle & a seperate state.
we all sri lankans want to move freely anywhere at any time within our country.
that is what we used to and that is the way we want the country to be.
unrestricted & free access to every part of the country. |
saliya
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 756
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12 Sep 2006 12:59:48 GMT Report for Abuse
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| To start negotiation both sides have to come to a compromise. LTTE should give up the idea of 'homeland' and GOSL should show how much autonomy they are willing to give to N & E. |
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